Hoover police, fire officials build bridges with community at 2017 National Night Out

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Sal Lorino takes a turn in the driver's seat in the Hoover Police Department dive team's boat at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Vanessa Forys, 9, of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, meets Charlie, the Hoover Police Department's bomb dog, at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Hoover Fire Department paramedic J.R. McDonald helps Olivia Scott, 7, of Hoover, Alabama, out of the cab of a ladder truck at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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People check out the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives display at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Camille Beason, 5, of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, tries on a Hoover Police Deparment dive team mask at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato gives a hug to Eli Oni, 7, of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Ali Nasher, 6, of Hoover, Alabama, checks out the Hoover Police Department's Special Response Team gear at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Abiha Khan, 7, of the Lake Cyrus community in Hoover, Alabama, tires on a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration vest at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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A climbing wall and inflatables were some of the activities available for children at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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An estimated 5,000 to 6,000 people attended the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017, Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis said.

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An estimated 5,000 to 6,000 people attended the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017, police Chief Nick Derzis said.

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Scottie Jackson, the director of education and outreach for the Alabama Wildlife Center, shows off an American kastrel, a type of falcon, at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Calton Nichols, 6, of the Ross Bridge community in Hoover, Alabama, at left, watches intently as he is fingerprinted for a child ID kit at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017. At right, his 2-year-old brother, Jackson, observes all the action.

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Yahia Elsaadawy, 4, of Homewood, Alabama, checks out a Hoover Police Department T3 vehicle used for special events at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Vijaya Sri of India checks out a Hoover Police Department T3 vehicle used for special events at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017. Sri is visiting her daughter, Malathi Grandhi of the Riverchase community in Hoover.

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Knox Duckett, 5, of the Southpointe community in Hoover, Alabama, checks out Hoover police Officer Jerry Edwards' motorcycle at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Sophia Borghei, 7, of the Inverness community, at right, checks out the Hoover Police Department dive team's boat at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

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Joe Nickelson, a member of the Hoover Police Department's Special Response Team, puts one of the team's helmets on Travis Thomas as his sisters, Isabella and Elizabeth, and father, Joe Thomas, watch at the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center in Hoover, Alabama, on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

Three-year-old Sal Lorino had never talked to a police officer before, but he got that chance tonight.

Sal’s parents, Gaeton and Elizabeth Lorino of Bluff Park, brought him and his 10-month-old sister, Marla, to the city of Hoover’s 2017 National Night Out event at the parking lot of The Grove shopping center off John Hawkins Parkway.

The annual event, part of a nationwide effort led the by the National Association of Town Watch, is designed to promote police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make neighborhoods safer.

Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis said that, so many times, the only experience people have with law enforcement officers is the “negative stuff.” Tonight was designed to give people an opportunity to interact with police and other public safety personnel in a positive way and see some of the tools they use every day to do their jobs, he said.

The Police Department had its specialty vehicles and equipment on display, including its mobile command unit, special response team tactical vehicle, motorcycles and the dive team boat.

Guests got to meet Charlie, a bomb detection dog, and get a close-up look at the bomb robot, police weapons and tactical equipment.

Numerous other public safety and law enforcement organizations also were on site.

The Hoover Fire Department had two of its ladder trucks and other emergency vehicles there, and the Southern Vintage Fire Apparatus Association brought several older fire trucks for people to see.

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An estimated 5,000 to 6,000 people turned out for the 2017 National Night Out event in the parking lot of The Grove shopping center on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2017.

Other agencies and organizations that took part in the event included the U.S. Army National Guard, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama, National Association of School Resource Officers, American Legion and American Red Cross.

Sal got to meet several police officers tonight and sit in the driver’s seat of the Hoover Police Department dive team’s boat.

But Sal said he liked the motorcycles best. When asked what a police officer’s job is, Sal said it’s “to catch bad guys.”

Derzis said that’s why he got into police work, but that’s only about 5 percent of what a police officer does.

He was pleased with tonight’s turnout, estimating about 5,000 to 6,000 people showed up. “It seems like it gets bigger and better every year,” he said.

Chad and Lindsey Nichols of Ross Bridge took advantage of the opportunity to have child ID kits made for their children, including their children’s names, photographs, fingerprint, physical description and identifying marks in case they ever go missing.

Lindsey Nichols said if something ever happens to one of their children, they’ll have this to give to police immediately to help find their child quickly.

Tonight’s National Night Out event at The Grove also featured food trucks, climbing and play activities for kids, 40 to 50 sports cars and vintage vehicles, and a small vendor display area.